Saturday, April 19, 2008
Pawpaw is home! I know this is a sad time, but I can't help feeling so joyful for Pawpaw. I just know he is up there hootin and hollerin and eating as many yummy grits as he can handle. If his stomach was small before, it is swelling up now- only this time with love from all of us. I miss my Pawpaw already. I wish I could have seen him more these past few years...but I am so glad I have so many memories of him that I can carry with me wherever I go. I love that when I chew Juicy Fruit or drink a Pepsi, I am reminded of Pawpaw. I love that when I am driving and I put my hand up on the ceiling I think "Hey, I'm driving just like my pawpaw". I love that nobody can yell like he can, or slap like he can. I love that without Pawpaws financial support, I wouldn't have gone off to college and met my wonderful husband. I love that when I hear an electric razor, I see Pawpaw in my head, walking around in his blue pants, black socks, and white wife beater shaving his face. I love his little sigh that sounded like "Hooohooohoo" after he had a good laugh. I love that I do the same thing when I laugh. I love my Pawpaw!!!!!!!!!
Wow,
so many emotions. I would like to say, thank you to Jesus. Jesus showed great mercy on Paw Paw and on us. It was torture knowing he was suffering. I smile and laugh at the thought of him dancing to the song of "tradition" He and Jesus are cuttin' a rug up there. He hasn't been able to do that in years.
To my paw paw,
How do I express all that I feel for you in mere words. I am so thankful to have been part of your heir. I hold my head high when I say "I am Ralph Woerner's granddaughter". This family will miss you greatly. We rejoice that you are dancing and hollaring with Jesus and Harold.
Your race is now run. You have won the prize. Congrats to you for a race well run. You are one of the best contenders this world has ever seen. I am so very glad I got to kiss you one last time. I got to see your smile one last time.
It is with joy and sadness that I say, goodbye. I blow a kiss toward heaven and I know that you are smiling and blowing one back. I love you ol man. You are a treasure in my heart and I will be seeing you soon.
Bye Ross I love you.
so many emotions. I would like to say, thank you to Jesus. Jesus showed great mercy on Paw Paw and on us. It was torture knowing he was suffering. I smile and laugh at the thought of him dancing to the song of "tradition" He and Jesus are cuttin' a rug up there. He hasn't been able to do that in years.
To my paw paw,
How do I express all that I feel for you in mere words. I am so thankful to have been part of your heir. I hold my head high when I say "I am Ralph Woerner's granddaughter". This family will miss you greatly. We rejoice that you are dancing and hollaring with Jesus and Harold.
Your race is now run. You have won the prize. Congrats to you for a race well run. You are one of the best contenders this world has ever seen. I am so very glad I got to kiss you one last time. I got to see your smile one last time.
It is with joy and sadness that I say, goodbye. I blow a kiss toward heaven and I know that you are smiling and blowing one back. I love you ol man. You are a treasure in my heart and I will be seeing you soon.
Bye Ross I love you.
A Wake-Up Call
I have to say nothing is quite as depressing as getting a wake-up call at 10 am, hearing dad say "I have some bad news" and knowing immediately what it is before he actually shares it. Though despite all the pain and hurt I think I should feel, all I have is an overwhelming peace that couldn't ever be described with simple words. God has always been kind to me in this area, and maybe it's because He knows that if He didn't I would fall apart. *shrugs*
It's been really fun to read all the different memories that have been posted, though I still have more to read. I don't have a ton of memories with Paw Paw, but the things I do remember are highly entertaining, or just good memories in general.
I remember going to the cold cold creek every summer. We would always enjoy a bit of family time there, and who can forget the infamous story of Harold falling on his back, and Paw Paw crying for the Watermelon?
I remember riding in the back of Eddy's truck with Ben as Paw Paw and Eddy took us fishing. We caught a large number of fish that day.
Speaking of fishing. I remember going deep sea fishing with just the guys, and every time Eddy would get a good catch Paw Paw would exclaim, "Wooooo Eddy!!!" with delight and a sparkle in his eyes that couldn't be matched... so we all started to imitate him in a loving teasing sort of way.
I remember sitting in the basement of the house back in Birmingham and looking in my stocking to see black socks. Good 'ol Paw Paw was looking out for me again :)
I remember watching him as he interacted with the grandkids and thinking, "I love my Paw Paw". He was a very kind man, though stern to be sure.
He was one of the people who taught me to work hard whether I liked it or not, and was even one of the ones to teach me how to cut grass the right way... get it cut well, but get grass all over you in the process :D
And so, though the memories I have of him are mostly fuzzy, I still do feel a twinge of sadness as I come to grips that he is with our Savior, but simultaneously I feel nothing but joy and happiness for him, because he no longer has to suffer the pains of this world.
I'm going to work on a poem dedicated to our all-time favorite Paw Paw. When I get it done, I'll post it up here.
It's been really fun to read all the different memories that have been posted, though I still have more to read. I don't have a ton of memories with Paw Paw, but the things I do remember are highly entertaining, or just good memories in general.
I remember going to the cold cold creek every summer. We would always enjoy a bit of family time there, and who can forget the infamous story of Harold falling on his back, and Paw Paw crying for the Watermelon?
I remember riding in the back of Eddy's truck with Ben as Paw Paw and Eddy took us fishing. We caught a large number of fish that day.
Speaking of fishing. I remember going deep sea fishing with just the guys, and every time Eddy would get a good catch Paw Paw would exclaim, "Wooooo Eddy!!!" with delight and a sparkle in his eyes that couldn't be matched... so we all started to imitate him in a loving teasing sort of way.
I remember sitting in the basement of the house back in Birmingham and looking in my stocking to see black socks. Good 'ol Paw Paw was looking out for me again :)
I remember watching him as he interacted with the grandkids and thinking, "I love my Paw Paw". He was a very kind man, though stern to be sure.
He was one of the people who taught me to work hard whether I liked it or not, and was even one of the ones to teach me how to cut grass the right way... get it cut well, but get grass all over you in the process :D
And so, though the memories I have of him are mostly fuzzy, I still do feel a twinge of sadness as I come to grips that he is with our Savior, but simultaneously I feel nothing but joy and happiness for him, because he no longer has to suffer the pains of this world.
I'm going to work on a poem dedicated to our all-time favorite Paw Paw. When I get it done, I'll post it up here.
He's Home
I just received the phone call. Ralph Woerner is now with Jesus. I'll post details as I get them.
Like dad wrote earlier, Meemaw and Pawpaw often came down and took us out to eat at Morrisons (yes april, the green jello cubes with whipped cream was the bomb.com!!). I remember being so excited to go because at the end of the meal Pawpaw would say "Well, I gotta go pay for this. Kids- you wanna come?" Which meant "Come with me and I will by you things" so of course we went. He always bought us a little handful of those pastel colored dinner mints, and a pack of juicy fruit. I can never chew a peice of Juicy Fruit without thinking about Pawpaw.
I also remember that for pretty much my entire life up until I got married (and even still..just not as much) I have not been fond of physical contact of any form. If you wanted a hug, it came from the side...or sometimes I would even back into a hug. I remember every time Memaw and Pawpaw would come he would say "You're gonna hug me and you're gonna like it" I would say "I dont HATE hugs pawpaw" and he would say "What are you gonna do when you're married and your husband wants a hug?" I figured I would just suddenly like them when I found the right guy. (hardy har har). It finally clicked one day that even though I may not like hugs (especially Jasons hugs cause he would stick my face in his armpit!!!), most red-blooded americans like and even NEED them and I think Pawpaw was one of them. I realized this when i was about 14 and ever since I made sure I gave Pawpaw a really good tight squeeze. Boy am I so glad I can't regret not hugging my Pawpaw!!!
I also remember that for pretty much my entire life up until I got married (and even still..just not as much) I have not been fond of physical contact of any form. If you wanted a hug, it came from the side...or sometimes I would even back into a hug. I remember every time Memaw and Pawpaw would come he would say "You're gonna hug me and you're gonna like it" I would say "I dont HATE hugs pawpaw" and he would say "What are you gonna do when you're married and your husband wants a hug?" I figured I would just suddenly like them when I found the right guy. (hardy har har). It finally clicked one day that even though I may not like hugs (especially Jasons hugs cause he would stick my face in his armpit!!!), most red-blooded americans like and even NEED them and I think Pawpaw was one of them. I realized this when i was about 14 and ever since I made sure I gave Pawpaw a really good tight squeeze. Boy am I so glad I can't regret not hugging my Pawpaw!!!
Curasore (sp?)
Aparently Papaw didn't get enough doing it to his kids. He had to start in on the grandkids. There you were, in misery, because your throat was hurting. It could be just starting or in the advanced stage. It could have been a simple sore throat or full blown strep. And here comes RW.
Bright-eyed because he saw a problem and was going to fix it in the next 90 seconds.
He'd walk out to the nearest bush or tree. He'd break off a sturdy twig. and then he'd wrap cotton around the end. And then he would wave his weapon in the air. It actually looked like a homemade q-tip. A huge and scary q-tip.
Then he'd dip that q-tip in some ungodly chemicals called curasore. This stuff could burn a whole in concrete. And with his curasore saturated q-tip, he'd shove it down your throat and swab everything from your tongue to your stomach.
Then you'd gage like you've never gaged before. Dry heaving at least 3 or 4 times, you would pray that something, anything would come up, just to stop to the pain. Tears would fill your eyes. finally, you would regain your breath. And you would look up to see Papaw say, "open up, we need to do it one more time."
In my experience with this procedure, my throat would feel tons better within a few hours. And almost totally healed within 24 hours.
Doesn't that capture a quality of Papaw? He had no qualms about pain, if it lead to gain. He could accept any amount of sacrifice, or suffering, or discomfort, if he saw how it would lead to success, or healing, or life. That's why I saw him as so strong. He seemed unfazed by hard times, challenges, obstacles.
Bright-eyed because he saw a problem and was going to fix it in the next 90 seconds.
He'd walk out to the nearest bush or tree. He'd break off a sturdy twig. and then he'd wrap cotton around the end. And then he would wave his weapon in the air. It actually looked like a homemade q-tip. A huge and scary q-tip.
Then he'd dip that q-tip in some ungodly chemicals called curasore. This stuff could burn a whole in concrete. And with his curasore saturated q-tip, he'd shove it down your throat and swab everything from your tongue to your stomach.
Then you'd gage like you've never gaged before. Dry heaving at least 3 or 4 times, you would pray that something, anything would come up, just to stop to the pain. Tears would fill your eyes. finally, you would regain your breath. And you would look up to see Papaw say, "open up, we need to do it one more time."
In my experience with this procedure, my throat would feel tons better within a few hours. And almost totally healed within 24 hours.
Doesn't that capture a quality of Papaw? He had no qualms about pain, if it lead to gain. He could accept any amount of sacrifice, or suffering, or discomfort, if he saw how it would lead to success, or healing, or life. That's why I saw him as so strong. He seemed unfazed by hard times, challenges, obstacles.
What a Man
I am sitting here reading all these great memories and I can't help but cry. What a man.
When I was young, paw paw would always sit on the floor with me while we watched the sound of music. He would always cry when the gazebo part would come. The part where they sang "I must of have done something good". I would always grab his arm and hug him so tightly and watch him as tears rolled down his face. One day I looked up at him and smiled and said "Paw paw, you are so romantic"
He took me on valentines dated when I got a little older. He wanted to teach me how a boy should treat me. We did this for three or four years. We always went to red lobster. The last year we did this we sat there at the table in silence. I have never been one to require a lot of conversation. I like silence most of the time, but apparently it really bothered him. He said, "Well I guess this is the last date since we're not talkin'!" He is so funny.
I remember at Richard and Leslie's wedding when we were all back at the hotel, I was walking beside him and he stopped and hugged me and with tears in his eyes he said "You are going to make a beautiful bride". A little more than a year latter he was officiating my wedding. What an honor it was for him to do this. A memory I will ALWAYS cherish.
Paw Paw always made me feel like a princess. Like his princess.
What a man
When I was young, paw paw would always sit on the floor with me while we watched the sound of music. He would always cry when the gazebo part would come. The part where they sang "I must of have done something good". I would always grab his arm and hug him so tightly and watch him as tears rolled down his face. One day I looked up at him and smiled and said "Paw paw, you are so romantic"
He took me on valentines dated when I got a little older. He wanted to teach me how a boy should treat me. We did this for three or four years. We always went to red lobster. The last year we did this we sat there at the table in silence. I have never been one to require a lot of conversation. I like silence most of the time, but apparently it really bothered him. He said, "Well I guess this is the last date since we're not talkin'!" He is so funny.
I remember at Richard and Leslie's wedding when we were all back at the hotel, I was walking beside him and he stopped and hugged me and with tears in his eyes he said "You are going to make a beautiful bride". A little more than a year latter he was officiating my wedding. What an honor it was for him to do this. A memory I will ALWAYS cherish.
Paw Paw always made me feel like a princess. Like his princess.
What a man
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